Japan’s quake death toll topped 10.000
The death toll from the huge earthquake and tsunami that devastated Japan's north-east coast has now topped 10,000, officials have announced.
At least 17,400 people are still missing, said the National Police Agency, two weeks after the disasters triggered further emergencies after damaging the cooling system at a nuclear power plant.
Work has now recommenced in parts of the stricken Fukushima plant which were evacuated after three workers were injured with suspected radiation burns on Thursday.
But a suspected reactor breach - a rupture in a crucial containment vessel for nuclear fuel - may set back any progress achieved in recent days.
"It seems that somehow the containment function could have been compromised somewhat, but we don't know more than that at the moment,' said Hidehiko Nishiyama, of the country's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency.